Method and apparatus using aiming pattern for machine vision training

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for use with a camera that includes a field of view (FOV), the method for selecting a portion of the field of view for analysis and comprising the steps of placing at least a portion of a first object within the field of view of the camera, providing a light source separate from the camera, directing the light source toward the first object within the field of view of the camera so that the light forms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate a first location of interest on the first object, obtaining an image of the portion of the first object within the field of view including the aiming pattern, identifying the location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image and using the aiming pattern in the obtained image to perform a processing function.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to machine vision systems and morespecifically to a system wherein an aiming pattern can be generated anddirected at an area or feature on an object to be imaged to select thefeature or object for enhanced analysis.

Machine vision systems have been developed for use in automatedinspection systems that capture images of objects within a field of viewand examine the objects to determine if the objects have expectedfeatures. Where expected features are not present, in some cases theobjects are rejected, in other cases an automated process may have to behalted and in still other cases objects have to be reoriented. In earlyinspection systems object features of interest had to be manuallyprogrammed which was complicated and time consuming.

More recent inspection systems have been developed wherein objectfeatures of interest are identified during a commissioning procedurewherein an image of an exemplary object to be inspected is obtained anda processor runs a program to identify object features of interest forinspection. In many cases not all image features are of interest forinspection. For instance, in some cases lighting of an object may besuch that different portions of a flat or slightly curved surface appearin a captured image to form an edge. Here, the apparent edge is not infact an edge and typically would not be of interest during objectinspection. To help a processor identify features of interest manycommissioning procedures require a system user to examine acommissioning image and identify specific image areas or portions thatinclude features of interest that should be identified and trained orlearned. Thus, for instance, where two true object edges are adjacentand their relative lengths and juxtapositions are important, the imagemay be provided on a computer screen and a mouse or other input devicemay be used to select an area including the two edges after which thetraining process can commence.

In addition to being usable to specify image areas for trainingpurposes, on-screen images and input devices can also be used toidentify different image features for other types of processing. Forinstance, once an image is captured, a mouse or other input device maybe used to select two different points on the image (i.e., pointscorresponding to image features of interest) for measuring a dimension(e.g., a length, a separation dimension, etc.). Moreover, other featuresof on screen images can be manually selected for further processing suchas specific information marks/symbols (e.g., bar codes) to be decoded,regions of interest that should be searched for known features, etc.

Unfortunately many inspection systems do not include an output devicesuch as a display screen that can be used to examine a commissioningimage and to identify portions/areas of the image that include featuresof interest for training purposes or for identifying features foradditional processing.

Thus, it would be advantageous to have a system that allows a user toidentify object areas or features for additional processing or trainingwhere a display screen and associated input device are not required.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,340,114 teaches a bar code reader that includes anaiming pattern generating device that includes a light source thatdirects an aiming pattern along a trajectory substantially parallel tothe axis of a reader field of view. This patent teaches that two imagesof a field of view are obtained in rapid succession, one image with theaiming pattern on and the other with the aiming pattern off. Where thefield of view is much larger than a bar code to be imaged and decoded,the aiming pattern is placed on the bar code to be read and the twoimages are obtained. The location of the aiming pattern in the firstimage is identified and the location information is used to identify anarea in the second image in which the bar code should be sought. Here,the aiming device is an integral part of the code reader assembly.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentfrom the description that follows and from the drawings which illustrateembodiments of the invention, and which are incorporated herein byreference.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It has been recognized that a simple aiming device that is separate froma reader can be provided that can generate an illumination aimingpattern on a feature or area of interest on an object so that when animage of the object including the aiming pattern is captured, thepattern can be recognized within the captured image and processingassociated therewith can be performed on the feature or area ofinterest. For example, in the case of a training commissioningprocedure, a hand held laser aiming device may be controlled to generatea rectilinear area defining pattern that can be directed at an object todefine an area on the object in which features exist that should belearned for subsequent inspections. Here, when an image of the object iscaptured, the aiming pattern and area defined thereby can be identifiedand the leaning process can be performed to identify object features ofinterest within the area. Thereafter the learned features can be storedto facilitate subsequent inspections.

In a general sense at least some embodiments of the invention includemethods whereby a process is specified for image features or an imagearea that is to be identified by the aiming pattern and then, when animage is obtained including the aiming pattern, the aiming pattern isidentified, features or the area associated with the aiming pattern areidentified and the specified process is performed.

It has also been recognized that an aiming device separate from a readermay be provided that is useable to generate several different aimingpatterns where the different aiming patterns indicate differentfunctions to be performed by a processor that interprets collectedimages. For instance, the aiming device may be controllable by a user togenerate any one of a cross shaped aiming pattern, a doughnut shapedaiming pattern or an arrow shaped aiming pattern where each of the threedifferent patterns indicates a different type of inspection process. Inthis case, when an image is obtained with one of the aiming patterns inthe image, an imaging processor identifies the aiming pattern in theimage, identifies the type of aiming pattern in the image and thenperforms the type of inspection process that is associated with theaiming pattern in the image.

Moreover, it has been recognized that an imager device may be used in avideo mode to obtain a plurality of images in a rapid sequence while anaiming device is used to indicate an area within the imager's field ofview. For instance, an aiming device that forms a dot type pattern maybe used to effectively draw a pattern around an area in the field ofview that is of interest while the image sequence is obtained forfurther examination. As another instance, an aiming device may be usedto indicate four separate corners of an area of interest in the field ofview while the image sequence is obtained. Thereafter, an imageprocessor can examine the image sequence and identify the area ofinterest and perform processing functions on the area of interest in oneof the obtained images.

Consistent with the above, at least some inventive embodiments include amethod for use with a camera that includes a field of view (FOV), themethod for selecting a portion of the field of view for analysis andcomprising the steps of: (a) placing at least a portion of a firstobject within the field of view of the camera (b) providing a lightsource separate from the camera where the light source can be positionedseparately from the camera, (c) directing the light source toward thefirst object within the field of view of the camera so that the lightforms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate a first locationof interest on the first object, (d) obtaining an image of the portionof the first object within the field of view including the aimingpattern; (e) identifying the location of the aiming pattern in theobtained image and (f) using the aiming pattern in the obtained image toperform a processing function.

In at least some cases the step of performing a processing functionincludes performing a feature learning process on a fractional portionof the image proximate the aiming pattern to identify object featuresand storing learned features for subsequent object inspection. In somecases the aiming pattern defines an area on the object and the step ofperforming the feature learning process on a fractional portion includesperforming the process on the portion of the image within the areadefined by the aiming pattern. In some cases the method further includesthe steps of placing at least a portion of a second object within thefield of view of the camera, obtaining an image of the portion of thesecond object within the field of view and analyzing the image of theportion of the second object within the field of view to locate at leastone of the learned features.

In some embodiments the method further includes the step of storinginformation related to the location of the aiming pattern in theobtained image for use during analysis of subsequently obtained imagesof other objects. In some cases the obtained image is a first image, themethod further including the steps of, with the aiming pattern off,obtaining a second image of the portion of the first object within thefield of view and wherein the step of using the aiming pattern in thefirst image includes using the location of the aiming pattern in thefirst image to select a portion of the second image for furtherprocessing. In some cases the step of providing a hand held light sourceincludes providing a pencil beam forming hand held light source.

In some cases the method further includes the step of repeating steps(b) through (e) for at least a second location of interest. In somecases the method further includes the step of repeating steps (b)through (d) for a plurality of locations of interest, the locations ofinterest together defining a field of view subsection, the step ofstoring including storing information specifying the field of viewsubsection.

In some cases the aiming pattern is used to define a line having alength dimension and the step of performing a processing functionincludes determining the length dimension of the line. In some cases thestep of performing a processing function includes searching a portion ofthe image proximate the aiming pattern for features of interest. In somecases the step of providing a light source separate from the cameraincludes providing a hand held light source.

In at least some embodiments the step of providing a light sourceincludes providing a light source that can be controlled to generate anyof a plurality of different aiming patterns, the method furtherincluding selecting one of the aiming patterns to be generated by thelight source and, after the step of identifying the location of theaiming pattern in the obtained image, identifying the type of aimingpattern in the obtained image and identifying a specific processingfunction to be performed as a function of the type of aiming patternidentified.

Some embodiments include a method for use with a camera having a fieldof view (FOV), the method for use during a commissioning procedure toidentify at least a first FOV subsection, the method comprising thesteps of (a) placing at least a portion of a first object of the firsttype within the field of view, (b) directing a hand held light sourcetoward the first object within the field of view of the camera so thatthe light forms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate afirst feature of interest on the first object, (c) obtaining an image ofthe portion of the first object within the field of view, (d)identifying the location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image,and (e) using the location of the aiming pattern in the obtained imageto perform a processing function.

In some embodiments the step of using the location of the aiming patternincludes selecting a first image portion of interest which correspondsto a fraction of the obtained image proximate the aiming pattern andwhich also corresponds to a field of view subsection and performing aprocessing function on the first image portion. In some cases the stepof performing a processing function includes examining the first imageportion of interest for at least one object feature, the step of storingincluding, when the at least one object feature is identified, storinginformation associated with the at least one object feature. In somecases the step of directing a hand held light source includes using apencil beam forming hand held light source.

Some embodiments include a system for obtaining an image of an objectwithin a field of view (FOV) and selecting a portion of the image foranalysis, the system comprising a data collector for obtaining an imageof a first object within a data collector field of view (FOV), a lightsource that is separate from the data collector and that is separatelypositionable from the data collector for, when a portion of a firstobject is within the field of view of the data collector, directinglight toward the first object within the field of view so that the lightforms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate a first locationof interest on the first object and a processor programmed to identifythe location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image and to use theaiming pattern in the obtained image to perform a processing function.

In some cases the processor performs a processing function by performinga feature learning process on a fractional portion of the imageproximate the aiming pattern to identify object features and storinglearned features for subsequent object inspection. In some embodimentsthe aiming pattern defines an area on the object and the processorperforms the feature learning process on a fractional portion byperforming the process on the portion of the image within the areadefined by the aiming pattern.

In some embodiments the processor further stores information related tothe location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image for use duringanalysis of subsequently obtained images of other objects. In some casesthe light source is a handheld light source. In some cases the lightsource is a laser beam light source. In some cases the aiming patterndefines a line having a length dimension and the processor determinesthe length dimension of the line within the obtained image. In somecases the processor performs a processing function by searching aportion of the image proximate the aiming pattern for features ofinterest.

Some embodiments include a method for use with a camera that includes afield of view (FOV), the method for selecting points within the field ofview for analysis, the method comprising the step of placing at least aportion of a first object within the field of view of the camera,directing a light source toward the first object within the field ofview of the camera so that the light forms an aiming pattern on theobject at a first location of interest, obtaining a first image of theportion of the first object within the field of view, identifying thelocation of the aiming pattern in the first image, with the first objectstill within the field of view of the camera, directing the light sourcetoward the first object within the field of view of the camera so thatthe light forms an aiming pattern on the object at a second location ofinterest, obtaining a second image of the portion of the first objectwithin the field of view, identifying the location of the aiming patternin the second image and using the identified locations of the aimingpattern in the first and second images to perform a processing function.

Still other embodiments include a method for use with a camera thatincludes a field of view (FOV), the method for selecting a function tobe performed on an image obtained by the camera and comprising the stepsof forming any one of a plurality of different illumination aimingpatterns on at least one surface of an object within the field of viewof the camera, obtaining an image of the first object within the fieldof view including the aiming pattern, identifying the type of aimingpattern in the obtained image and identifying a process associated withthe identified aiming pattern wherein a different process is associatedwith each different aiming pattern.

In some embodiments the method further includes the step of performingthe identified process that is associated with the identified aimingpattern. In some cases a different process is associated with each ofthe different aiming patterns and wherein each of the processes is aninspection process. In some cases the method further includes the stepsof providing a light source controllable to generate any of a pluralityof different aiming patterns, selecting the one of the plurality ofdifferent aiming patterns to be generated by the light source anddirecting the selected aiming pattern toward the first object within thefield of view of the camera so that the light forms the aiming pattern.

In some cases the step of obtaining an image and the step of using alight source include using a light source that is separate from theimager used to obtain the image. In some cases the method furtherincludes identifying the location of the aiming pattern in the obtainedimage and performing the identified process on a portion of the imageassociated with the location of the aiming pattern in the image.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention,then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described. The followingdescription and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certainillustrative aspects of the invention. However, these aspects areindicative of but a few of the various ways in which the principles ofthe invention can be employed. Other aspects, advantages and novelfeatures of the invention will become apparent from the followingdetailed description of the invention when considered in conjunctionwith the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustrating an exemplary machine vision systemthat is consistent with at least some aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustrating various components of the workstationshown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the exemplary aiming device shown inFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustrating the various components of at leastone embodiment of the aiming device shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of an object supported by a transfer line beltwhere an exemplary aiming patterns is formed on the object;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method that is consistent with atleast some aspects of the present invention for using the aiming deviceof FIG. 3 to indicate an area of an object to be examined within animage during a training procedure;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a method for using trained patternsto inspect objects for specific features;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a method consistent with at leastsome aspects of the present invention for using the aiming device ofFIG. 3 to identify a region of interest on an object for searching forfeatures of interest;

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating the aiming device of FIG. 3 being used toprovide a line type aiming pattern on an object being imaged;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating a method consistent with at leastsome aspects of the present invention wherein an aiming pattern on anobject is used to identify a length dimension to be determined;

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating the aiming device of FIG. 3 used toidentify a specific symbol on a label for decoding;

FIG. 12 is a flow chart illustrating a method whereby the aiming deviceof FIG. 3 is used to identify a mark or symbol within a camera field ofview for decoding;

FIG. 13 is a flow chart illustrating a general method whereby an aimingpattern captured by an imaging device is used to facilitate a processingfunction;

FIG. 14 is a subprocess that may be added to the process of FIG. 6whereby the location or area specified by an aiming pattern during acommissioning procedure is stored for subsequent use during objectinspection procedures; and

FIGS. 15A-15C are schematics illustrating three different aimingpatterns that may be generated by an aiming device in at least someembodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals correspondto similar elements throughout the several views and, more specificallyreferring to FIG. 1, the present invention will be described in thecontext of an exemplary object imaging system 10 including a camera 12,a workstation 14, a transfer line 16, a plurality of objects to beimaged, two of which are identified by 18 a and 18 b, and a handheldaiming device 20. Referring also to FIG. 2, workstation 14 includes adisplay 22, a processor 24, a keyboard/input device 26, a memory 32 anda receiver 34. Processor 24 is linked to each of the display 22,keyboard 26, memory 32 and receiver 34. Programs run by processor 24 arestored in memory 32. Processor 24 provides output to a system user via adisplay 22. Processor 24 receives user input via the keyboard inputdevice 26 and can also receive wireless transmissions via receiver 34.Receiver 34 is akin to an access point in a wireless network or thelike.

Referring still to FIGS. 1 and 2, processor 24 is also linked to thecamera 30 for receiving information therefrom and providing controlsignals thereto. Camera 30 includes a field of view 40 (see againFIG. 1) that can be directed toward objects to be imaged. Although notshown in FIG. 1, a light source 36 may be integrated with the camera 30or there may be a separate light source for shining light within thefield of view 40 of the camera 30 to illuminate objects within the fieldof view to be imaged. Processor 24 may be linked to light source 36 forproviding control signals thereto to turn on the light source duringimaging activity.

Referring once again to FIG. 1, in the illustrated embodiment, camera 30is supported by a camera support stand 28 so that the camera facesdownward and the field of view 40 is stationary. Transfer line 16includes a transfer line belt or the like, a portion of which isidentified by numeral 17, for transferring objects into the field ofview 40 of camera 30 to be imaged. In FIG. 1, two exemplary objects tobe imaged are identified by numerals 18 a and 18 b. Each of the objects18 a and 18 b is similarly configured and therefore, in the interest ofsimplifying this explanation, only object 18 a will be described in anydetail. Object 18 a includes, among other surfaces, a first generallyflat surface 50 where three cross-shaped patterns are formed near alateral edge. One of the cross-shaped patterns on surface 50 isidentified by numeral 52.

Referring once again to FIG. 1 and also now to FIGS. 3 and 4, aimingdevice 20 is a handheld light generating device that can be controlledto generate a light pattern on one of the objects (e.g., 18 a) to beimaged. To this end, device 20 includes a housing structure 58 that hasa grip portion 58 and a barrel portion 60. An activation button 62 isprovided on a front portion of the grip portion 58. A laser mechanism 56is housed within barrel 60 so that a distal end thereof extends from thedistal end of barrel 60. The laser mechanism 56 can be controlled toform any of several different laser patterns. For example, as shown inFIG. 3, laser 56 may be controlled to form a rectilinear or squareaiming pattern 44. Other aiming patterns that may be formed by laser 56include a line, a dot or point, a plurality of points that togetherdefine an aiming space therebetween, etc.

In addition to the components above, the illustrated aiming device 20also includes a transmitter 64, a memory 67, a controller 65 and abattery 69 (see again FIG. 4). The controller 65 is linked to each ofthe laser device 56, activation button 62, transmitter 64, memory 67 andbattery 69. In at least some embodiments, device 20 only generates alaser aiming pattern when the activation button 62 is pressed. In someembodiments, activation button 62 may have two different activationstates, one state for turning on the laser and generating the aimingpattern 44 and a second state causing the controller 65 to transmit asignal via transmitter 64 indicating that the camera 30 (see againFIG. 1) should take a picture of the object within its field of view 40.Thus, for example, button 62 may have three positions including adeactivated position where the button is not pressed, a laser turn onposition where the button is pressed to a first or intermediate positionand an image capture position where the button 62 is completely pressed.In this case, button 62 may have a detent at the intermediate positionso that a device user can easily feel that position when that positionis reached.

Referring still to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, when transmitter 64 transmits animage capture signal, receiver 34 receives that signal and provides thatsignal to processor 24. Processor 24 in turn controls camera 30 toobtain an image of the object within field of view 40.

As well known in the imaging arts, software has been developed that canbe used during a commissioning procedure to allow a processor orworkstation to examine an exemplary object to be imaged andautomatically identify and learn specific features of the exemplaryobject so that those features can be subsequently identified during aninspection process of other objects that have similar or identicalfeatures. In many cases, specific object features are particularlyimportant while other features are less so and, in these cases, thelearning process can be expedited by identifying areas on an object inwhich the specific features reside so that the learning process can beexpedited.

Referring now to FIG. 6, one exemplary method 80 for identifying objectareas to be inspected to facilitate an object feature learning processis illustrated. Referring also to FIGS. 1 through 5, at block 82, alearning object 18 a is positioned within the camera field of view 40 sothat the features to be learned or trained will be captured in an imageby the camera 30. At block 84, a user turns on aiming device 20 andpoints the aiming pattern at the object 18 a to select an area orlocation of interest for training. In FIGS. 1 and 5, an exemplary areafor training is identified by numeral 44 and includes the cross-shapeditem 52 as well as two lateral edges of the object 18 a adjacent item52. In the above example where the activation button 62 has threepositions (i.e., one position deactivated, an intermediate position forgenerating the aiming pattern 44 and a fully pressed position causing asignal to be transmitted via transmitter 64), at this point, button 62is in the intermediate position. At block 86, button 62 is fullydepressed causing transmitter 64 to transmit an image capture signalwirelessly to receiver 34. When the image capture signal is received,processor 24 causes camera 30 to capture an image of object 18 aincluding aiming pattern 44 where the aiming pattern indicates afractional portion of the image obtained.

Referring still to FIGS. 1 through 6, at block 88, the captured image isreceived by processor 24 and the processor 24 locates the aiming pattern44 (see again FIG. 5) in the image. At block 90, processor 24 runs anyof several different learning or training software routines to examinethe portion of the image defined by the aiming pattern and to identifyobject features for training. At block 92, the trained features arestored for inspection of subsequent objects. In the above example, thetrained features may include characteristics of the cross-shaped pattern52, existence of the two lateral edges adjacent pattern 52, dimensionsbetween pattern 52 and the adjacent two edges, dimensions of pattern 52,etc.

At block 94, where additional training patterns or features are to belearned control passes back up to block 84 where the process is repeatedfor a different area of the object 18 a. To this end, aiming device 20may again be used to select a different portion or area of object 18 afor feature training. At block 94 where no more training features are tobe learned, the process ends.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a method 98 that may be used to identifytrained patterns or features during a subsequent inspection process ofother objects (e.g., 18 b in FIG. 1) is illustrated. Referring also toFIGS. 1 through 5, at block 100 a subsequent object 18 b is moved intothe field of view of the camera. At block 102, an image of the object 18b is captured. At block 104 training patterns or features are accessedwithin the memory/database 32. At block 106, processor 24 searches theimage or the training patterns for features.

In addition to being used to identify areas of an object for training orlearning purposes, according to another aspect of the present invention,the aiming device 20 can be used to manually identify object areas thatshould be searched for known specific features. To this end, one method110 using the aiming device 20 to identify regions of interest forsearching for known features of interest is shown in FIG. 8. Referringonce again to FIGS. 1 through 5, at block 112 model features of interestare specified and stored. Consistent with the above example, modelfeatures of interest may include the cross-shaped pattern 52 along witha dimension between that pattern 52 and an adjacent edge of item 18 a.At block 114, the object to be examined or inspected 18 a is positionedwithin the camera field of view 40 so that the area including thefeatures of interest is within the field of view. At block 116, device20 is activated so that the aiming pattern 44 is generated and theaiming pattern 44 is aimed at the region of interest as shown in FIG. 5.At block 118, camera 30 captures an image of the field of view 40including the aiming pattern 44. At block 120, process 24 locates theaiming pattern 44 in the image. At block 122, processor 24 examines theportion of the image defined by the aiming pattern for the modelfeatures of interest. At block 124, where the features of interest havenot been locates, control passes back up to block 122 where multipleattempts to identify the features of interest may occur. Once thefeatures of interest are located, at block 124, control passes to block126 where additional functions may be performed. For example, additionalfunctions may include an affirming signal to the system user that thefeatures of interest have been identified and are within specifictolerances.

According to yet one additional aspect of the present invention, aimingdevice 20 may also be used to select different characteristics orfeatures of an object being imaged for dimension measuring purposes.Thus, for example, referring now to FIG. 9, where cross-shaped patterns52 and 53 are spaced apart by a dimension 130, device 20 may be used toidentify adjacent edges of patterns 52 and 53 and processor 24 may beprogrammed to calculate the distance between those adjacent edges. Tothis end, as seen in FIG. 9, device 20 may generate a planar type laserpattern that forms a line of light 130 on an object to be images. Here,the length of the line 130 may be adjusted and device 20 may bepositioned such that the opposite ends of the line 130 define a lengthdimension to be measured.

Referring now to FIG. 10, a method 140 for measuring a distance betweenobject characteristics or features is illustrated. Referring also toFIGS. 2, 4 and 9, at block 142, the object 18 a is positioned within thecamera field of view 40. At block 144, the line forming aiming pattern132 is turned on and is aimed at the object 18 a to select a dimensionto be measured. At block 146, camera 30 captures an image of the object18 a including the aiming pattern 130. At block 148, processor 24locates the aiming pattern in the image and at block 150, processor 24determines the length dimension of the aiming pattern in the image. Atblock 152, processor 24 reports the length dimension via display 22 andmay also store that length dimension if necessary.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, device 20 maybe used to select one of several different symbols or marks to bedecoded that are located within the camera field of view 40. To thisend, refereeing to FIG. 11, an exemplary label 162 is illustrated thatincludes a plurality of marks or symbols, some of which are identifiedby numerals 164, 166, 168 and 170. When label 162 is within the field ofview 40 so that an image of the entire label is obtained, where only oneof the symbols is of interest such as, for instance, symbol 168, thatsymbol can be selected via device 20. To this end, as shown in FIG. 11,device 20 may be controlled to generate a laser line or point source 42that can be directed at label 162 so as to impinge on the symbol 168 ofinterest.

Referring now to FIG. 12, an exemplary method 180 for using device 20 toselect a symbol of interest to be decoded is illustrated. Referring alsoto FIGS. 2, 4 and 11, at block 182 an object including the label 162 ispositioned within the camera field of view 40 so that the label 162 canbe imaged. At block 184, the laser aiming pattern or dot is turned onand is directed at the mark or symbol 168 to be decoded. At block 186,an image of the label 162 is captured including the aiming pattern ordot. At block 188, processor 24 (see again FIG. 2) locates the aimingpattern or dot in the image and at block 190 processor 24 identifies themark or symbol 168 selected via the aiming pattern. At block 192 theselected mark 168 is decoded.

It should be appreciated that the aiming device 20 can be used inconjunction with a camera 30 to perform any function whereby the device20 is used to generate an aiming pattern on an object to be imaged wherethe image includes the aiming pattern and some processor function thatuses the aiming pattern can then be performed. To this end, referringnow to FIG. 13, an exemplary generic method 200 that may be performedusing the system shown in FIG. 1 is illustrated. At block 202, afunction to be performed on a feature of interest is specified via aprocessor program stored in memory 32 (see also FIG. 2). At block 204,an object including the feature of interest is positioned within thecamera field of view 40. At block 206, the laser aiming pattern ofdevice 20 is turned on and the pattern is aimed at the object to selectsome feature of interest or area of interest. At block 208, an imageincluding the aiming pattern is captured and at block 210 processor 24locates the aiming pattern in the image. At block 212, processor 24performs the specified functions associated with the features selectedvia the aiming pattern.

In at least some embodiments it is contemplated that the aiming device20 may be a very simple aiming device that can only generate a pencilbeam of light to form a dot or point on an object to be imaged. Here, inat least some embodiments, to define a line for a length measurement orthe like as described above, the camera 30 may be used first and secondtimes to obtain two images of an object where the aiming device 20 isused to specify different location is on the object during each imagecapture process. Thus, for example, referring again to FIG. 9, during afirst image capture, device 20 may be used to identify an edge ofpattern 52 and during a second image capture, device 20 may be used toidentify an edge of pattern 53. Here, processor 24 (see again FIG. 2)will be programmed to recognize that the dimension measurement processshould be performed after the two images are obtained and using the twolocations within the images specified by the two dot aiming patterns.

Similarly, where device 20 is only capable of generating a pencil laserbeam, an area or region of interest for training or for inspection maybe specified by obtaining three or more images with device 20 used toindicate different locations on the object being imaged in each one ofthe three or more images. Thus, for instance, referring again to FIG. 5,during a first image capture, device 20 may be used to identify corner181 of pattern 44, may be used to identify corner 183 during a secondimage capture, may be used to identify corner 185 during a third imagecapture and may be used to identify corner 189 during a fourth imagecapture.

In a similar fashion, at least some embodiments may include a reader orimager device that can be placed in a video mode where a sequence ofimages can be obtained in rapid succession over a period. In this case,a pencil beam type aiming pattern may be used while an imager device iscollecting video images to draw a circle around an area on an objectwithin the imager device's field of view. Here, the different locationsof the pencil beam aiming pattern during the drawing action are obtainedin the series of video images. After the drawing process has beencompleted, processor 24 (see again FIG. 1) examines each of the imagesin the video sequence to identify the locations of all of the pencilbeam patterns in the sequence. Together the patterns in the sequencespecify an area of interest in the images for further inspection,learning, etc. Once the area of interest is identified the processorperforms an inspection process or some other function on one of thesequence images or on another image of the object obtained without theaiming pattern on.

In still other embodiments it is contemplated that, with an imagerdevice operating in the video mode to obtain a sequence of images inrapid succession, a pencil beam or other type aiming pattern may be usedto indicate three or more points within the imager device's field ofview that together define a space or region of interest on an object inthe field of view. Here, the aiming device is turned on three or moreseparate times and pointed at locations of interest in the field of viewthat circumscribe the are of interest. After the area defining pointshave been indicated and images including the point have been obtainedvia the imager device, processor 24 (see again FIG. 1) examines each ofthe images in the video sequence to identify the locations of all of thearea defining locations of the aiming pattern. Together the patternlocations in the sequence specify an area of interest in the images forfurther inspection, learning, etc. Once the area of interest isidentified the processor performs an inspection process or some otherfunction on one of the sequence images or on another image of the objectobtained without the aiming pattern on.

Referring once again to FIG. 2, where the objects 18 a, 18 b, etc., tobe inspected are to be juxtaposed in a similar or identical orientationwith respect to the camera 30 during an inspection process so thatsimilar features should be located in identical or similar locationswithin obtained images, in at least some embodiments, it is contemplatedthat during a training or learning process, in addition to learning andstoring object features of interest for subsequent inspection, thelocations of those features within the images can be obtained and storedfor use during subsequent inspections. Thus, for instance, referringagain to FIG. 5, the portion of the image to be defined by aimingpattern 44 may be stored during the commissioning procedure and thatsame area or portion of subsequent images during an inspection processmay be inspected for the features of interest. This step of storingimage portions for subsequent inspection can expedite the subsequentinspection processes appreciably.

Referring to FIG. 14, an exemplary subprocess that may be added to theprocess of FIG. 6 for storing information that specifies a fraction ofan image area for subsequent inspection is illustrated. Referring alsoto FIG. 6, after block 92 where trained features for inspection ofsubsequent objects have been stored, control passes to block 93 in FIG.14 where the location of the aiming pattern used during thecommissioning procedure is stored for subsequent inspection of otherobjects. After block 93, control passes to back block 94 in FIG. 6 wherethe process described above continues.

In at least some embodiments, it is contemplated that the aiming device20 may only be able to form a simple dot or point type aiming pattern.In these cases, one other way to identify a region of interest in animage of an object is to program the processor 24 (see again FIG. 2) toidentify an area about a point in an image as a region of interest.Thus, referring again to FIG. 5, a point or dot aiming pattern may bepositioned directly in the middle of the illustrated pattern 44 andprocessor 24 may be programmed to identify a 4×4 inch space about thedot as a region of interest for feature learning, inspection, etc.

In some embodiments, it is contemplated that the aiming pattern maydegrade portions of an image thereby deteriorating the usefulness of theinformation for its intended purpose(s). For instance, referring againto FIG. 11 where a barcode is to be decoded, it may be that an aimingpatterns on a barcode (see 168) will adversely affect decoding of thecode upon imaging. Here, in at least some embodiments, instead ofselecting a code for decoding by identifying the code impinged by anaiming pattern, processor 24 (see again FIG. 2) may be programmed toselect the code that is most proximate an aiming pattern in an obtainedimage. Thus, here, an aiming device user could aim the aiming pattern(e.g., a dot) at a location immediately adjacent code 168 to select thatcode for further processing.

In still other embodiments, it is contemplated that where an aimingpattern in an image can deteriorate image data for its intended purpose,two images may be taken in rapid succession instead of one image, wherethe aiming pattern is on for one of the images and off for the other ofthe images. In this case, the aiming pattern in the one image can beidentified, a location or area associated with the aiming pattern can bedetermined and that location or area can be used to identify the samelocation or area in the other image. Thereafter, processing can beperformed on the data corresponding to the location or area in the otherimage in the manner described above.

In at least some embodiments it is contemplated that an aiming device 20may be controllable to generate any of several (e.g., 10, 15, etc.)different aiming patterns and that an imaging processor 24 (see FIG. 2)may be programmed to associate each of the different aiming patternswith a different inspection process or other function (e.g., learning afield of view area of interest for subsequent inspection, etc.) Here,the processor is also programmed to, when an image is obtained, identifyan aiming pattern in the image, identify aiming pattern type, associatethe aiming pattern type with a specific function or process to beperformed and then perform the associated function or process. Forexample, referring to FIGS. 15A through 15C, where a processor canperform three different inspection processes A, B and C, the differentprocesses A, B and C may be associated with a cross shaped pattern 250(see FIG. 15A), a doughnut shapes pattern 252 (see FIG. 15B) and anarrow shaped pattern 254 (see FIG. 15C), respectively. In this case,when processor 24 recognizes a doughnut shaped pattern 252 in an image,processor 24 performs inspection function B. Similarly, when processor24 recognizes a cross or arrow shaped pattern, processor 24 performsfunctions A and C, respectively. In FIG. 11 an aiming device 20′ isillustrated forming an arrow shaped aiming pattern 169 to specify aspecific function to be performed. Here, while the aiming device may beseparate from the imager device, in at least some embodiments the aimingdevice may be part of a handheld reader device or the like (i.e., theaiming device and imaging device may be integrated into a singlepackage).

In some embodiments it is contemplated that two or more aiming devicesmay be used simultaneously to provide two or more aiming patterns on anobject to specify either an area or separate areas of interest on theobject. For instance, referring again to FIG. 11, two aiming devices 20and 20′ are illustrated where device 20 is used to identify a specificbar code 168 within a field of view 40 while device 20′ is used togenerate an arrow shaped aiming pattern 169 specifying a location in thefield of view corresponding to a date of deliver field. Here, a singleimage could be obtained with both aiming patterns and processor 24 (seeagain FIG. 2) may be programmed to identify the locations of both aimingpatterns in the obtained image, as well as the aiming pattern types andthereafter may perform different functions on information in differentportions of the obtained image. As another instance, three aimingdevices could be used simultaneously to indicate three different pointson an object that define an area. In this case the processor 24 obtainsa single image with the three aiming patterns, identifies the locationsof the three patterns and performs a process accordingly.

While a handheld light source is described above, it should beunderstood that other mounted light sources are contemplated where thelight source is still separately positionable from thecamera/sensor/data collector.

One or more specific embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed above. It should be appreciated that in the development of anysuch actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project,numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve thedevelopers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related andbusiness related constraints, which may vary from one implementation toanother. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a developmenteffort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be aroutine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those ofordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.

Thus, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, andalternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the following appended claims.

1. A method for use with a camera that includes a field of view (FOV),the method for selecting a portion of the field of view for analysis andcomprising the steps of: (a) placing at least a portion of a firstobject within the field of view of the camera; (b) providing a lightsource separate from the camera where the light source can be positionedseparately from the camera; (c) directing the light source toward thefirst object within the field of view of the camera so that the lightforms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate a first locationof interest on the first object; (d) obtaining an image of the portionof the first object within the field of view wherein the obtained imageincludes the aiming pattern; (e) identifying the location of the aimingpattern in the obtained image; and (f) using the aiming pattern in theobtained image to perform a processing function.
 2. The method of claim1 wherein the step of performing a processing function includesperforming a feature learning process on a fractional portion of theimage proximate the aiming pattern to identify object features andstoring learned features for subsequent object inspection.
 3. The methodof claim 2 wherein the aiming pattern defines an area on the object andthe step of performing the feature learning process on a fractionalportion includes performing the process on the portion of the imagewithin the area defined by the aiming pattern.
 4. The method of claim 2further including the steps of placing at least a portion of a secondobject within the field of view of the camera, obtaining an image of theportion of the second object within the field of view and analyzing theimage of the portion of the second object within the field of view tolocate at least one of the learned features.
 5. The method of claim 1further including the step of storing information related to thelocation of the aiming pattern in the obtained image for use duringanalysis of subsequently obtained images of other objects.
 6. The methodof claim 1 wherein the obtained image is a first image, the methodfurther including the steps of, with the aiming pattern off, obtaining asecond image of the portion of the first object within the field of viewand wherein the step of using the aiming pattern in the first imageincludes using the location of the aiming pattern in the first image toselect a portion of the second image for further processing.
 7. Themethod of claim 1 wherein the step of providing a light source includesproviding a pencil beam forming light source.
 8. The method of claim 1further including the step of repeating steps (b) through (f) for atleast a second location of interest.
 9. The method of claim 1 furtherincluding the step of repeating steps (b) through (e) for a plurality oflocations of interest, the locations of interest together defining afield of view subsection, the step of storing including storinginformation specifying the field of view subsection.
 10. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the step of providing a light source includes providinga light source that can be controlled to generate any of a plurality ofdifferent aiming patterns, the method further including selecting one ofthe aiming patterns to be generated by the light source and, after thestep of identifying the location of the aiming pattern in the obtainedimage, identifying the type of aiming pattern in the obtained image andidentifying a specific processing function to be performed as a functionof the type of aiming pattern identified.
 11. The method of claim 1wherein the step of performing a processing function includes searchinga portion of the image proximate the aiming pattern for features ofinterest.
 12. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of providing alight source separate from the camera includes providing a hand heldlight source.
 13. A method for use with a camera having a field of view(FOV), the method for use during a commissioning procedure to identifyat least a first FOV subsection, the method comprising the steps of: (a)placing at least a portion of a first object of the first type withinthe field of view; (b) directing a hand held light source toward thefirst object within the field of view of the camera so that the lightforms an aiming pattern that is one of on and proximate a first featureof interest on the first object; (c) obtaining an image of the portionof the first object within the field of view wherein the obtained imageincludes the aiming pattern; (d) identifying the location of the aimingpattern in the obtained image; and (e) using the location of the aimingpattern in the obtained image to perform a processing function; whereinthe light source is separate from the camera and wherein the lightsource can be positioned separately from the camera so that the aimingpattern can be aimed at different locations within the field of view ofthe camera.
 14. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of using thelocation of the aiming pattern includes selecting a first image portionof interest which corresponds to a fraction of the obtained imageproximate the aiming pattern and which also corresponds to a field ofview subsection and performing a processing function on the first imageportion.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein the step of performing aprocessing function includes examining the first image portion ofinterest for at least one object feature, the step of storing including,when the at least one object feature is identified, storing informationassociated with the at least one object feature.
 16. The method of claim13 wherein the step of directing a hand held light source includes usinga pencil beam forming hand held light source.
 17. A system for obtainingan image of an object within a field of view (FOV) and selecting aportion of the image for analysis, the system comprising: a datacollector for obtaining an image of a first object within a datacollector field of view (FOV); a light source that is separate from thedata collector and that is separately positionable from the datacollector for, when a portion of a first object is within the field ofview of the data collector, directing light toward the first objectwithin the field of view so that the light forms an aiming pattern thatis one of on and proximate a first location of interest on the firstobject; and a processor programmed to receive an obtained image from thedata collector where the obtained image includes the aiming pattern, toidentify the location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image and touse the aiming pattern in the obtained image to perform a processingfunction.
 18. The system of claim 17 wherein the processor performs aprocessing function by performing a feature learning process on afractional portion of the image proximate the aiming pattern to identifyobject features and storing learned features for subsequent objectinspection.
 19. The system of claim 17 wherein the aiming patterndefines an area on the object and the processor performs the featurelearning process on a fractional portion by performing the process onthe portion of the image within the area defined by the aiming pattern.20. The system of claim 17 wherein the processor further storesinformation related to the location of the aiming pattern in theobtained image for use during analysis of subsequently obtained imagesof other objects.
 21. The system of claim 17 wherein the light source isa handheld light source.
 22. The system of claim 17 wherein the lightsource is a laser beam light source.
 23. The system of claim 17 whereinthe light source is controllable to generate any of a plurality ofdifferent aiming patterns, the processor programmed to, afteridentifying the location of the aiming pattern in the obtained image,identifying the type of aiming pattern in the obtained image andidentifying a specific processing function to be performed as a functionof the type of aiming pattern identified.
 24. The system of claim 17wherein the processor performs a processing function by searching aportion of the image proximate the aiming pattern for features ofinterest.
 25. A method for use with a camera that includes a field ofview (FOV), the method for selecting points within the field of view foranalysis, the method comprising the step of: (a) placing at least aportion of a first object within the field of view of the camera; (b)directing a light source toward the first object within the field ofview of the camera so that the light forms an aiming pattern on theobject at a first location of interest; (c) obtaining a first image ofthe portion of the first object within the field of view wherein thefirst image includes the aiming pattern at the first location ofinterest; (d) identifying the location of the aiming pattern in thefirst image; (e) with the first object still within the field of view ofthe camera, directing the light source toward the first object withinthe field of view of the camera so that the light forms an aimingpattern on the object at a second location of interest; (f) obtaining asecond image of the portion of the first object within the field of viewwherein the second image includes the aiming pattern at the secondlocation of interest; (g) identifying the location of the aiming patternin the second image; and (h) using the identified locations of theaiming pattern in the first and second images to perform a processingfunction.
 26. The method of claim 25 wherein the camera has a video modeand wherein the first and second images are obtained in rapidsuccession, the method further including the steps of, prior to usingthe identified locations of the aiming patterns to perform a processingfunction, directing the light source toward the first object in thefield of view so that the aiming pattern is formed on the object atadditional locations of interest, obtaining a plurality of additionalimages of the portion of the first object in the field of view with theaiming pattern at the additional locations of interest and identifyingthe locations of the aiming pattern in each of the obtained images, thestep of using the identified locations including using at least a subsetof the identified locations from all of the obtained images.
 27. Themethod of claim 25 wherein the light source is separate from the cameraand wherein the light source can be positioned separately from thecamera so that the aiming pattern can be aimed at different locationswithin the field of view of the camera.
 28. A method for use with acamera that includes a field of view (FOV), the method for selecting afunction to be performed on an image obtained by the camera andcomprising the steps of: (a) forming any one of a plurality of differentillumination aiming patterns on at least one surface of an object withinthe field of view of the camera; (b) obtaining an image of the firstobject within the field of view wherein the aiming pattern appears inthe obtained image; (c) examining the obtained image to identify theaiming pattern in the obtained image; (d) examining the aiming patternfrom the obtained image to determine the type of the identified aimingpattern; and (e) identifying a process associated with the identifiedtype of aiming pattern wherein a different process is associated witheach different type of aiming pattern.
 29. The method of claim 28further including the step of performing the identified process that isassociated with the identified aiming pattern.
 30. The method of claim29 wherein a different process is associated with each of the differentaiming patterns and wherein each of the processes is an inspectionprocess.
 31. The method of claim 28 further including the steps ofproviding a light source controllable to generate any of a plurality ofdifferent aiming patterns, selecting the one of the plurality ofdifferent aiming patterns to be generated by the light source anddirecting the selected aiming pattern toward the first object within thefield of view of the camera so that the light forms the aiming pattern.32. The method of claim 28 wherein the step of obtaining an image andthe step of using a light source include using a light source that isseparate from the imager used to obtain the image.
 33. The method ofclaim 28 further including identifying the location of the aimingpattern in the obtained image and performing the identified process on aportion of the image associated with the location of the aiming patternin the image.
 34. A method for use with a camera that includes a fieldof view (FOV), the method for selecting a function to be performed on animage obtained by the camera and comprising the steps of: (a) formingany one of a plurality of different illumination aiming patterns on atleast one surface of an object within the field of view of the camerawherein the plurality of aiming patterns include at least first andsecond different types of aiming patterns; (b) obtaining an image of thefirst object within the field of view wherein the aiming pattern appearsin the obtained image; (c) examining the obtained image to identify theaiming pattern in the obtained image; (d) examining the aiming patternfrom the obtained image to determine the type of the identified aimingpattern (e) where the aiming pattern in the obtained image is of a firsttype, identifying a first process; and (f) where the aiming pattern inthe obtained image is of a second type, identifying a second processthat is different than the first process.
 35. The method of claim 34further including the step of performing at least one of the identifiedfirst and second processes.
 36. The method of claim 34 wherein each ofthe first and second processes is an inspection process.